WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES

2000, Unrated

Only 39 extended shots comprise Béla Tarr's 2000 film Werckmeister Harmonies, but every one is masterful. A poetic, black-and-white drama about the arrival of a bizarre circus in a small Hungarian town, Werckmeister Harmonies represents Tarr's shift from political realism to a film philosophy that's subtle, complex and challenging. János Valuska (Lars Rudolph from Run Lola Run) is a handsome young man committed to a life of science and education until the Soviet forces crush him. The visiting circus that starts the chain of events brims with metaphor. Its mysterious director claims magnetic powers and calls himself The Prince. Before long he encourages the townspeople to rebel against the humdrum lives and their authorities. Inside the circus truck is the stuffed corpse of a giant whale. Does the whale represent the town's oppressive government? Such answers lie at the heart of this beautiful, intriguing film. It's the best of the Tarr releases by Facets so far -- the Chicago-based film arts organization released three of his early movies last year -- further proof that he's a filmmaker worth advocating. (Steve Ramos) Grade: A

DOMINO

DOMINO (NEW LINE)

2005, Rated R

Loosely based on real-life female bounty hunter Domino Harvey, Domino is the story of an outsider (Keira Knightley) finding acceptance in the testosterone-filled profession of hunting fugitives. Harvey, daughter of Academy Award-nominated actor Laurence Harvey, feels alone and lost in the world until a chance meeting with a pair of world-famous bounty hunters (Mickey Rourke and Edgar Ramirez) leads her to her destiny. Directed with all the subtlety and patience of an average 30-second commercial, Tony Scott's film is an annoying and overblown tribute to a fairly unlikable person. Filled with fast editing and erratic cinematography, Domino is a confusing mess that isn't helped by its bewildering script by Richard Kelly, the writer/director of the cult favorite Donnie Darko. He's filled the film with totally unbelievable characters and circumstances that lead you to suppose the "Based on a True Story, Sort of" tagline was created to avoid lawsuits from those who knew Harvey. Bonus features on the disc include the usual array of deleted scenes, featurettes and commentaries, but the real highlight is an interview with Domino Harvey taken before she died in June 2005. (Andy Swope) Grade: D

THE HOBART SHAKESPEAREANS

THE HOBART SHAKESPEAREANS (NEW VIDEO GROUP)

2005, Unrated

The happy accident that united veteran filmmaker Mel Stuart with extraordinary elementary schoolteacher Rafe Esquith allows the story of The Hobart Shakespeareans to inspire people, both young and old, near and far. Stuart claims a film biography more eclectic than most, directing Walter Cronkite on the documentary series The 20th Century as well as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The thread that unites Stuart's work is his ability to tell great stories, and he has uplifting material with Esquith and his fifth-grade students. Hobart Boulevard Elementary is a massive public school in a part of Los Angeles Esquith describes as poor and rough. The 20-year teaching veteran believes in giving children equal chances, and that's what his class "Will Power" aims to do through the plays of William Shakespeare. The Hobart Shakespeareans is about the power of Shakespeare and children learning to stage Hamlet, but it's more about the importance of equal opportunity education and a child's capability when given a chance. Stuart stays true to classic documentary formula with face-the-camera interviews and handheld footage. There's no need for photographic magic with a story as rousing as this one. (Steve Ramos) Grade: B

MISTER PEEPERS

MISTER PEEPERS (S'MORE ENTERTAINMENT)

1952-55, Not Rated

One of the first hit sitcoms of television, Mister Peepers also holds up as one of the best, thanks to the late, great Wally Cox's sly, goofy and -- a word not often used in reviews of sitcoms anymore -- humane performance as the young and mild-mannered new science teacher at a Midwestern high school. Not that the shows were low-key -- Cox's Robinson Peepers had a nose for weird trouble. In one episode collected here, he gets his hand stuck inside a halibut! Today, Cox reminds one a lot of Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker -- they have the exact same combination of shyness and sweetness. This four-DVD set, licensed from UCLA Film & Television Archive, collects the first 26 episodes of the classic Emmy-nominated series that also featured Tony Randall as a history teacher. Extras include a Dom DeLuise interview about Cox as well as his appearance on Laugh-In in the late 1960s. (Steven Rosen) Grade: A